These are diary entries that I wrote throughout my ten-day Sojourn to the Past trip on February 14-23. Each entry is posted here two weeks after it was originally written, due to the provision that I didn’t have any computer or internet access during my trip. Be sure to check out my other Sojourn to the Past coverage. Enjoy.

Today was another long day. After our 8 AM breakfast, we started with what was titled “The longest lesson of our life.” Personally, I’m not sure of the validity of that statement, but I thought that it was certainly worth it. The lesson was about the Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954 and about the Little Rock Nine’s integration of Little Rock Central High School. We met each of the nine (through a movie) and were introduced to their struggle to get into Central and what they endured. We then went into how the students there could permit such atrocities hapening in their school, and thus, the dangers of being a silent witness.

Then, Minnijean Brown-Trickey (one of the Little Rock Nine) spoke. She talked about how a lot of what goes down in history is unimportant to teenagers because the historians are old people, and she discussed how the events surrounding the Nine were really a fight about who had the power and the law: state government or the federal government. She then answered some questions, and then we did a “give back” session, where we shared with Minnijean the words we used to describe her and why.

We then had a lesson on Medgar and Myrlie Evers, who were voting rights leaders from Mississippi. We learned about the deplorable voting rights laws in Mississippi and learned about the horrendous things that its state government did to spy and cause the systematic killing of black voters and their sympathizers. It was shocking and amazing to learn that the same things that this country criticized Nazi Germany, China, and the Soviet Union for took place here in this country.

Finally, after dinner, we went to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historical Museum. We had exclusive access there tonight, and got to take a very close look at the six major exhibits there: Segregation, The King Family, Call to Lead, Visiting the Mountain Top, Expanding the Dream, and Overcoming Loss. It was a very interesting and very interactive museum, with lots of pictures, words, and videos. We were also permitted to take pictures, which you’ll be able to see on my Flickr account once I get them posted.

Tomorrow we’re in for another lesson-filled day at the hotel, but already, in only two days, I have learned so much, and am looking forward to what’s still to come.

Tags: Arkansas, Atlanta, Central High School, civil rights, diaries, Dr. King, Georgia, history, King Center, Little Rock, Little Rock Nine, Medgar Evers, Minnijean Brown-Trickey, Mississippi, Myrlie Evers, Sojourn to the Past, Sovereignty Committee, voting rights

Today is the ever-so-special February 29th–the “leap day”–that happens only once every four years. Folks who are born on this day have to suffer from premature aging and an expected lifespan that is far shorter than the national average, although the benefits are that they get to graduate when they’re only age 4 and can retire at age 16.

Personally, I appreciate February 29th because it represents another four years that we’ve gone without seeing the end of the world, and we can all hope and pray that we’ll make it to February 29, 2012 as well.

The technicalities of the leap year are interesting in that they represent how difficult it is to precisely equate the calendar with the true rotation of the earth. The scientists have figured out that a single orbit of the earth around the sun takes 365 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, and 12 seconds. This is just shy of 365 days and 6 hours, aka 365.25 days. Thus, the leap year is really a means of correcting our slightly-flawed calendar system so that we can stay somewhat on tap with when the real winter solstice is by adding a day every four years, which is any year divisible by four.
However, it gets more confusing because of that pesky little fact that the rotation is slightly less than 365.25 days, and so that’s why there is not a leap year during any years divisible by 100, unless the year is divisible by 400. That’s why, in the year 2000, we had a leap year, but there wasn’t a leap year in the year 1900, and there won’t be a leap year in the year 2100.

It’s actually because of this moving around with leap years and stuff why solstices and equinoxes are never on the same day each year. The scientists have figured out that the winter solstice in 1903 was December 23rd, but in 2003 it was December 22nd, and in 2096 it will be December 20th–that particular winter solstice in the year 2096 will be the earliest winter solstice since the seventeenth century, and that 1903 winter solstice was the latest winter solstice since the sixteenth century (and there won’t be another winter solstice that late until the early 2300s).

Anyway, it’s quite mind-boggling, but nevertheless, February 29th is only something that happens once every four years. Plus, it’s the sixtieth day of 2008, meaning that we’re already about 16% through the year!

Since this is the first leap year that I’ve had to blog on (my blog did not exist in February 2004), I thought I’d take the opportunity to make mention of the leap year. If you want more info about this man-made phenomenon, I’d advise that you check out Wikipedia.

Tags: 2008, date, earth, February 29, leap year, rotation, solstice, Wikipedia

These are diary entries that I wrote throughout my ten-day Sojourn to the Past trip on February 14-23. Each entry is posted here two weeks after it was originally written, due to the provision that I didn’t have any computer or internet access during my trip. Be sure to check out my other Sojourn to the Past coverage. Enjoy.

Today was the first day of Sojourn, and boy, it was a long one. I was up at 2:30 AM this morning in order to shower and get ready, including last minute packing. (As usual, I forgot something…this time is was the shampoo.) We got to the airport a little after 4:00, and our flight went smoothly, arriving on time at around 1:45 PM (Eastern time now).

We had some assignments to start on the flight. I finished the assignment on Minnijean Brown-Trickey (which will be due tomorrow morning in order to meet her). I also finishesd up the reading on John Lewis, though I need to do that assignment still (due on Sunday).

Once we got through the airport, on the buses, to the hotel, and checked in, it was about 3:45 PM and we went into the meeting room for a lesson on the 1963 March on Washington. This included an introduction to the principles of nonviolence (which Dr. King wrote, by the way), in addition to talking about how that march was organized. We then looked in depth at the speeches made that day by John Lewis (SNCC) and Dr. King (SCLC). It was indeed an interesting lesson and helped to better expand the significance of that march to me.

After dinner, we went to Stone Mountain, which is pretty much the Confederate equivalent of Mount Rushmore, featuring carvings of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Stonewall Jackson. After we took some pictures, we read quotes from John Lewis’ book, and then we played Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, reflecting it off of the mountain. We then had time to reflect on the seventeen minutes of that speech and what we felt listening to it.

Personally, I thought about the contrast between the figures carved in the mountain, who represented force, and violence, and destruction, versus Dr. King’s message of nonviolence, kindness, and calling for doing constructive things, to come together as a people. To me, it was a very profound, touching moment.

Right now, I’m writing this in the hotel lobby and socializing with other folks on the trip. There’s 150 students here representing about a dozen schools from the Bay Area, the Los Angeles area, and the New York area. I’m already very glad that I’m here and am looking forward to a good trip.

Tags: Atlanta, Confederacy, diaries, Dr. King, Georgia, Mount Rushmore, Sojourn to the Past, Stone Mountain

You don’t see me bragging very often about being a United States citizen, mostly because I’m not a big fan of many of the things that the United States is doing these days. But, man, I can’t stop bragging about being a Californian, because California is flat out awesome. (Yes, there are a number of things that California has problems with, but we’re much more awesome than the feds at this time.)

One of the ways that California has been awesome is that in California, it is illegal for merchants to set expiration dates on gift certificates/gift cards, or to charge fees on them. Now, granted, some merchants have found loopholes to get around that limitation slightly, but they still mean that when you give someone a gift card, it’s much more difficult for that merchant to count it as extra money for their pockets.

Well, for whatever unusual reason, I was watching our local news on TV tonight (something that I almost never do), and they had a special report on a new law that went to effect in California on January 1, 2008 dealing with the issue of low-balance gift cards.

Have you ever had a case where you didn’t fully utilize a gift card, and didn’t feel the urge to keep spending with it because of how little was left? Consumer Reports recently found that merchants last year made $8 billion from unused gift card value. Well, the new law states that any gift certificate/gift card with a cash value of less than $10 can be redeemed for cash equivalent to its cash value, and that merchants are required to give you cash back if you ask for it. Again, this is only a California law, but this is absolutely sweet.

However, there isn’t a lot of teeth on this law, and most merchants won’t offer it to you. The news station apparently went under cover to try to get cash back at a number of stores, and a number of these stores refused to give cash back. So if you’re a Californian, you have a right to get your cash back, but you should probably be sure to inform them that it is California state law. My news station made a special gift card with the law on it that you can keep with you.

What if that still doesn’t convince them? Well, I did some Google searching for some answers. Apparently, the recommendation is to try to call or e-mail the merchant’s corporate offices to inform them of the law and what happened. But, if that still doesn’t work, you can apparently contact the state Attorney General at the following address:

Attorney General’s Office
California Department of Justice
Attn: Public Inquiry Unit
P.O. Box 944255
Sacramento, CA 94244-2550

Or you can call (916) 322-3360, or the toll-free number (in California): (800) 952-5225.

Know your rights, and take advantage of them, so that you don’t let merchants take advantage of you! (And yes, be glad that you’re a Californian and have this right!)

Tags: Attorney General, California, cash back, gift cards, gift certificates, law, merchants, rights, stores

If there’s anyone that could write the answer to that joke, it would be my very own San Mateo County.

I live within California’s Twelfth Congressional District (out of the fifty-three that California has–I know, it’s huge!), which covers most of San Mateo County and a small part of southern San Francisco. Our district has been represented for the last 27 years by Democrat Tom Lantos, who recently passed away due to cancer on February 11th. He was the only Holocaust survivor to serve in Congress. While I haven’t necessarily been a fan of some of his policies, he’s definitely been very respected in our community to pull off as many elections as he has.

But now he’s passed away, and everyone’s now trying to figure out what’s going to happen next.

He had announced in early January that he would not be seeking reelection due to his cancer, and so a number of other locals have been stepping up to run for the 2009-2011 term, including our local former state senator Jackie Speier, as well as some others who are running. The primary election for the 2009-2011 term is supposed to take place on June 3rd, and the general election on November 4th.

Now, I’ve already ranted on here about the craziness of having three elections (February 5th, June 3rd, and November 4th) in a calendar year, all because California wanted to move their primaries up and then half of the country decided to follow suit. But now, courtesy of Lantos’ death, we’ve got a fourth election up our sleeve.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (yes, as a Californian, I have to know how to spell that correctly) has essentially ordered our county to hold a special primary election on April 8 that will have us vote on who will be Lantos’ replacement up until the end of the term on January 3, 2009. In other words, “Who wants to wear the dead guy’s shoes for six or seven months?” So, yes, if you’re counting, this means a fourth election in a seven-month time span: November 6 (2007), February 5, April 8, and June 3. Can you imagine how hard that must be on poll workers and on voters? Not to mention how expensive elections are to put on? And this April 8 election is just for one race to see who gets to be Congressman for a few months.

For this reason, our county wanted to make the April 8 special election an all-mail election, which would have cut the estimated $1 million cost down to about $650,000–noting, by the way, that 40% of our county is already vote-by-mail and special elections usually have a less than 30% turnout rate. Oh, and all of this at a time when California is facing a $16 billion budget deficit. Pretty much all that’s involved in the April 8th election is that three people have filed to run in the special election: Jackie Speier (Democrat), Mike Moloney (Republican), and Greg Conlon (Republican). If one of them gets a majority of the vote (more than 50%), they automatically win. If none of them gets a majority, then the leading Democrat (Jackie Speier) and the leading Republican are contested in the “special general election” on June 3rd. This obviously gets confusing because June 3rd is also the “normal” primary for the 2009-2011 term, which have the same people running, so it would be weird to have the special general election and the not-special open primary for the same congressional seat at the same time.

But essentially, the April 8th ballot is just for one Congressional district for one race with three names on it, and our county wanted to do it by mail. Just a single sheet of paper with three languages on it (our county is required by state to print all election materials in English, Spanish, and Chinese, based our our results from the 2000 census) to be sent back in and processed. Unfortunately, the needed legislation died in committee, and so our county is going to have to setup polling places, hire and train poll workers, and try to get our county to actually come out to those polls to vote, just for a little special election.

All I can say is it sure is a big waste of money at a time when California’s economy appears to be going to hell in a handbasket.

Update: I based my post on information from our County’s elections blog. They just posted an update to fix some inaccuracies on their part.

Tags: Congress, district, elections, House of Representatives, rant, San Mateo County, seat, term, Tom Lantos

Well, if you haven’t noticed, I’m back from Sojourn. I’m still a little bit groggy, partly due to the time zone changes and to the general lack-of-enough sleep that accompanies Sojourn, along with the fact that I’ve now got a truckload of make-up homework to tackle over the next week or two. However, I did thoroughly enjoy my experiences on Sojourn and was very glad that I had the opportunity to go.

Now, as you know, I didn’t have any kind of computer/internet/electronics-of-any-kind-other-than-digital-cameras type of access on the trip, and so instead of blogging the trip as I would have, I kept a daily diary of what took place each day on the trip. That’s right, all handwritten. Wow. (Actually, with all of the notes and other homework we had, my handwriting actually got a bit of improvement! Not a lot, just a bit.)

Anyway, I’m going to be publishing my Sojourn Diaries here, on my blog, beginning this Thursday, February 28 and ending on Saturday, March 8–essentially, each post will be made two weeks after the day I originally wrote it. It’s not as great as being able to blog the trip live as it’s happening, but for me, it will be the best way of sharing how the trip was with you and everything that we did, because it was quite an experience.

But anyway, I am back and ready to roll! Once all of that make-up work is done, of course…

Tags: diaries, School, Sojourn to the Past, south, trip

Good morning everyone, and Happy Valentine’s Day (even if I haven’t been paying any attention to Valentine’s Day this year, for obvious reasons). It’s about 3 AM as I’m writing this, and I’m getting ready to head off for my Sojourn to the Past trip. I posted my itinerary a week ago, and so I’ll be back online again on Sunday, February 24th.

However, as I leave, I thought that I’d leave one final thought, which was from Bill Moyers a month ago.

See you all in a week and a half.

Tags: Bill Moyers, civil rights, history, Lyndon Johnson, Martin Luther King, Personal, Sojourn to the Past, trip, Valentines Day

Contrary to my usual habits, I was very excited to get my hands on Mac OS X Leopard, to the point where I went ahead and pre-ordered it, thus officially deeming myself an “early adopter.” I then spent the month of November on Webmacster87.info with my so-called Leopard Feature Presentation. However, Leopard had a few disappointing attributes, which I summed up best in the following quote that I wrote on December 1st:

Leopard does have a share of downsides, and does suffer a bit from an “Apple knows best” syndrome in the fact that a number of features don’t come with preferences to allow the user to choose what he/she wants in his/her user experience, and probably the best example of this concerns Apple’s new desktop, translucent menu bar, and 3D Dock.
From Review and Final Recap: Mac OS X Leopard

Well, at long last, these downsides have been corrected. Three and a half months after Leopard was released, 10.5.2 was published, an 180 MB update that among making many, many bug fixes, also reverses some of the “Apple knows best” attributes.

For one thing, the translucent menu bar is no longer as translucent, but even better, they’ve added an option to turn off the opaque menu bar completely! What’s now there is a greyish gradient menu bar, which is actually fairly reminiscent of the rest of Leopard’s interface (and easier on the eyes than the white translucent menu bar type I was using before).

Also, I have finally fallen in love with Stacks. Apple has now made it possible for you to set the folder icon as the representative icon for the stack (instead of a “stack” of the top three files), and the pre-Leopard list view has returned–even better because you no longer need to right-click to get to it. While I’m going to keep using Fan mode for the Downloads folder, I love the list view so much more for Applications and Documents stacks.

As for the 3D Dock, the Mac developer community is so awesome that there are a large number of freeware tools available that let you switch to the 2D Dock style if you prefer, so I think that the complaints over the 3D Dock have died down (not that I ever had problems with it).

All in all, I’d say that now with 10.5.2, Leopard is finally truly an undisputed worthwhile package that I highly recommend everyone upgrade to. Apple may have taken three and a half months to catch up, but Vista has been out for 13 months now, and Microsoft still hasn’t fixed that!

Anyway, I’m very glad to see 10.5.2, and feel so much happier using my computer thanks to it. Now let’s see if perhaps it has the power to fix random shutdowns…

Tags: Dock, features, Mac OS X Leopard, menu bar, Stacks, update

The following article was written by blogging about blogging extraordinaire, Lorelle VanFossen. She has one of the oldest personal blogs in existence, Taking Your Camera on the Road, which began in 1994. She is also the author of the awesome book “Blogging Tips: What Bloggers Won’t Tell You About Blogging”. She and I talked quite a bit about personal blogging back in September on PreviewCast #044, and so I asked her to contribute some more thoughts on the importance of personal blogging. Enjoy! –Douglas

The Art of Personal Blogging

When I started my first website - an online journal back then - it was a combination of technical articles and stories about our life as we prepared to quit our jobs and take off six months to a year to travel full-time around North American. Fourteen years later, and still living on the road, such a site is called a blog - a personal blog.

A personal blog is the story of your journey. No matter where it takes you.

There are a lot of names and purposes a personal blog can have. It can be about your day-to-day life, a sort of online diary. It can be a place where you can rant and rage without censors. It can be a place to tell your stories. It can be an online classroom where you share your knowledge and expertise.

Which makes it hard to define a personal blog as it can be anything and everything.

However, there is an art to personal blogging that makes it work for you and be the success that you want it to be. It begins by defining what personal success is for you and your personal blog.
Continue reading »

Tags: Blogging, content, goals, guest blog, Lorelle VanFossen, Personal, personal blogging, style, tips

I have alluded a couple of times recently to the trip (called Sojourn to the Past) that I am going on a trip during this month. (And, I’m still looking for guest bloggers to provide some content during my absence!) However, as per my usual pattern, it’s probably about time for me to share my itinerary with you all.

I first mentioned the trip on my blog three months ago when I was fundraising for it. Well, I completed my fundraising, partly thanks to a timely scholarship award that I was given from the good folks at Peace Action of San Mateo County, and so next Thursday, I will be off. Here is a look at my very busy schedule while I’m gone.
Continue reading »

Tags: Civil Rights Movement, itinerary, School, Sojourn to the Past, speakers, trip